Newspaper holder



v Dec. 3, 1935. w. T. M ADAMS NEWSPAPER HOLDER 2 File d Jan. 2, 1955 Patented Dec. 3, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 6 Claims.

My invention relates to a holder for newspapers and the like and it is an object of the same to provide a collapsible or foldable device of this character which will take up very little space in a traveling bag or a brief case. Primarily the device is intended to be used by busy people who are accustomed to read newspapers at the table and who desire a support for the same which can conveniently be carried from place to place but which will afford a secure support for a partly folded newspaper in substantially upright position, and yet will not interfere with placing of dishes by a waiter or be otherwise objectionable.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described which shall be very light, for which purpose it is of skeleton construction and is made either largely or entirely of wire.

Referring to the drawing, which is made a part of this application and in which similar reference characters indicate similar parts:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of my device,

Fig. 2, a side elevation,

Fig. 3, a side elevation of the device in folded or collapsed position,

Fig. 4, a horizontal section on line 4-4 of Fig. 2, and

Fig. 5, a vertical section on line 55 of Fig. 1.

In the drawing reference character l0 indicates the legs of a base here shown as U-shaped, the legs being connected by a cross member H. In the form of the invention at present preferred by me the base consists of sheet metal bent into U- shape but obviously wire or other suitable materials may be utilized. The legs ID are tapered at l2 to reduce the weight while giving a substantial length thereto for greater stability.

A rest, indicated generally at I3, is pivoted to the base, preferably by means of inwardly bent portions M at the lower ends of the side members of the rest extending into openings in the legs ID. The rest is shown as a sort of wire grid but it will be obvious that this part of the invention may take any desirable form suitable for the purpose intended and yet light and. strong.

It is desirable that the rest should be held in approximately vertical position and that its extreme upper end should not be as far back as the rear ends of legs H], for the sake of stability. In order to hold the rest in desired position I provide a detent consisting, in the preferred form, of a wire rod l5 which is bent around the side members of the rest and is then bent forward and upward as at I 6 to provide holding means for engaging the front face of a newspaper or the like to prevent it from slipping off the ledge formed by the horizontal portions between the rest and the projections Hi. In order that the width of the legs I 0 may be kept quite small, this being for convenience in transportation of the device, 5 a shoulder is formed at I! on each leg, preferably by forming a notch in the upper portion of the leg and this shoulder is only slightly back of the pivot of the rest, while the detent I5 is slidably mounted on the rest so that it may ride 10 downward on the rest into a position such as indicated in Fig. 5. If the detent maintained this position, the rest could not reach the position illustrated in Fig. 3 where it lies parallel to the major axis of the legs. and therefore I provide 15 notches at [8 in the legs to accommodate the detent 15.

If the notches l8 were directly underneath the notches providing the shoulders H the upper and lower notches would approach so closely to each 20 other as to weaken the base seriously and therefore the notches l8 are placed further back than the other notches. It will be obvious that detent [5 would not enter notches l8 if it remained in the position shown in Fig. 5 and therefore the forwardly extending bottom portion of the upper notches is inclined as at I 9 so as to form cams for raising the detent to a position where it will ride directly into the notches l8 when the rest is folded forward and then underneath the base as in Fig. 3. When the rest is restored to position for use the detent, if made in the form illustrated, may slide down the side members of the rest into the position shown in Fig. 5 or if it should bind it can readily be pushed down by the user.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that many variations may be made in the form and structure of the device of my invention, as by making all parts of wire or by making all parts of sheet metal which may be suitably perforated 40 or reduced to lighten it, and that it may be used for various other purposes in addition to what is above described, therefore I do not limitmyself to what is shown in the drawing and described in the specification but only as required by the 45 state of the prior art.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a foldable support for sheet material, a 50 base, a rest pivoted thereto, shoulder means on the base, and a detent on the rest movable on said rest into a position close to the pivot of the rest for engaging said shoulder and supporting the rest in a nearly upright position.

3. In a foldable support for sheet material, a

base, a rest pivoted thereto, a rod slidably mounted on said rest, means'on the base adapted to 'coact with said rod for supporting the rest in rearwardly inclined position, and means at the lower side of the base to receive said rod when the rest is folded underneath the base.

4. In a foldable support for sheet material, a base, a rest pivoted thereto, a rod slidably mounted at the lower end of said rest, and means on the base coacting with said rod for supporting the rest in rearwardly inclined position; said rest being foldable underneath the base into a position parallel to the bottom plane of the base.

5. A device as in claim 4, including cam means in front of said supporting means for raising said rod as the rest is swung forward, and a notch at the under side of the base for receiving said rod in the folded position of the device.

6. A foldable supporting device for folded newspapers and the like comprising a U-shapedbase member having parallel top and bottom edges for a part of its length, a rest member having resilient legs straddling said U-shaped member, the 5 lower ends of said legs being bent inwardly, the sides of said base member having holes adjacent the cross bar thereof to receive the ends of said legs, a rod slidably mounted on the legs of said rest, the ends of said rod being bent outward and 10 upwardto hold an article in place against said rest, means on the sides of the base for holdin the rest in rearwardly inclined position with reference to said base, inclined cam edges on the sides of the base extending from said holding 15 means to the front of said base for raising said rod as the rest swings forward, and notches in the under edges of the sides of the base to accommodate said rod when the rest is swung underan neath said base.

WESSON THURMAN MCADAMS, 

